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SUNDAY WAS A TOUGH LOSS for New England Patriots fans, but MGHer Chan Thammavong still felt like a winner

MGHer wins trip to Super Bowl

10/Feb/2012

SUPER SMILES: Patriots player Rob Gronkowski poses for a photo with Thammavong.

SUNDAY WAS A TOUGH LOSS for New England Patriots fans, but MGHer Chan Thammavong still felt like a winner. Just days before the most talked about sporting event in the United States, Thammavong won the MGH Fund employee raffle for a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Super Bowl XLVI.

Thammavong’s name was drawn from 15,900 entries. He had purchased five raffle tickets at the urging of a colleague but never thought he would win the grand prize. “I’ve never won a raffle before. When I got the call, I thought it was a joke!” said Thammavong, a radiology technologist who has worked at the MGH since 2004.

With the big game just days away, Thammavong had to think quickly about who would accompany him on the trip. He chose friend and fellow MGHer Alex Bruce. The two enjoyed a chartered flight to Indianapolis, pregame parties with Pats players and attended a postgame reception sponsored by the team.

Despite a disappointing outcome, Thammavong’s spirits weren’t dampened. “We got to meet Joe Montana, I saw my favorite musical group perform, and we hung out with diehard Pats fans,” said Thammavong. “The game was amazing. My heart rate was doubled the entire time!”

Thanks to the generosity and enthusiasm of employees, the MGH also was a big winner. Raffle sales raised nearly $80,000 for the MGH Fund, the hospital’s unrestricted funding source.